In the isekai anime genre, Rimuru Tempest from That Time I Got Reincarnated As a Slime is often considered the pinnacle of strength; however, there are some characters in Mushoku Tensei who can actually battle him without much problem.
Let’s take a look at ten such characters, ranking them on the basis of how strong they are against Rimuru. While the ones near the top rank can beat Rimuru, there are still characters who won’t be able to fight him. However, we are still including them in this ranking to paint the picture better.
| TITLE | Mushoku Tensei | That Time I Got Reincarnated As a Slime |
| MAL RATING (as of July 2, 2026) | 8.32 / 10 | 8.13 / 10 |
| STUDIO | Studio Bind | 8bit |
| WHERE TO WATCH | Crunchyroll | Crunchyroll |
10. Kishirika’s Demon Heritage Grants Immense Energy, But Pitiful Combat Scaling
Kishirika Kishirisu, the Great Demon Emperor, was born with insane innate magic, in addition to the fact that she is practically immortal. She led the demon race through two wars just by existing as a rallying point, no real fighting required.
However, against True Dragon Rimuru, she is practically an ant. While she is a powerhouse full of energy, she doesn’t know how to use it as a fighter would. That’s why she lands at the bottom of this list, still strong, just not built for this specific matchup.
9. Randolph Marianne Holds a Slight Advantage in Direct Combat
Randolph is the current Death God. He is immortal and has enough combat skills for quick, clean kills rather than drawn-out battles. Against Rimuru, that killer instinct might let him land the first actual hit before Rimuru starts showing him why he’s considered one of the strongest.
The problem is he’s openly weaker than past Death Gods, without their monstrous regeneration or mana pool to back him up once the fight drags on. Rimuru’s healing eventually catches up to whatever damage Randolph manages early. Enough for 9th place, not much higher than that.
8. Gal’s Blade Is Fast Enough to Threaten Even True Dragon Rimuru
Gal Farion is another current god, Sword God to be specific. Which means he is the best swordsman alive in the universe of Mushoku Tensei. Even early Rimuru’s reaction speed can be put to the test against Gal’s blade. However, that’s all there is. Gal can use a sword, for sure, but he cannot do anything against even the base-level magic skills that Rimuru has. Hence, he ranks this low.
7. Alek’s Gravity Sword Can Give Rimuru Some Trouble
Kalman the Third, also known as Alek, is the current North God. He fights with his Dragon King Sword, which allows him to have a considerable amount of control over gravity. He is able to crush or pin down whatever he wishes using his sword.
Against Rimuru’s shapeshifting body and constant regeneration, gravity control may actually work for some time, since it doesn’t rely on simply outdamaging Rimuru’s healing; it just makes sure Rimuru stays in one place for some time. Still, Alek’s overall power ceiling sits a step below the top of this list. He could genuinely cause problems for Rimuru, but closing the full gap on his own is a much harder ask.
6. Rudeus Greyrat’s Emperor-Rank Magic Rivals Rimuru’s Own Arsenal
Rudeus isn’t a titled God or an ancient warrior, but his magic output earns him a real spot here. He’s got Emperor-rank water magic, the biggest mana pool in the story since childhood, and great skill across nearly every school of magic that exists, something almost nobody else on this list can claim. Furthermore, he is also skilled enough with a sword.
Rimuru is strong because his skills are stacked and he can absorb abilities, but Rudeus’s range in various schools of thought is one of the few things that can actually make him survive Rimuru for a long time. However, as we can see, this is still a matter of survival. Even by the end, Rudeus never gets strong enough to be able to properly challenge Rimuru in a hypothetical battle.
5. Perugius Dola’s God-Tier Magic Meets Its Toughest Test in Rimuru
We are finally getting into the big leagues. Perugius is one of the Seven Great Heroes and the Armored Dragon King, which means he was involved in sealing Laplace himself (more on him in just a moment). He has command over multiple magical systems that most people wouldn’t even encounter in their entire lives, and he also has a personal teleportation network.
He can really drag the fight out with Rimuru. However, while he has a huge variety of magic, Rimuru’s abilities are just very adaptable. A character who’s still on a human level, no matter what magic they know, would struggle a lot against Rimuru.
4. Badigadi’s God-Slaying Feats Put Him Near Rimuru’s Scaling
Badigadi is one of the only characters in Mushoku Tensei who has been confirmed to have fought and split a God-level being. In that universe, that is no small feat. It’s the proof that he can hurt things that most of the characters can’t even touch, let alone fight.
While against the final form, Rimuru Badigadi still falls short, as Rimuru is simply too strong; Badigadi is among the characters who go the furthest in combat while still not being a true god-like entity himself. There are still three characters stronger than him; let’s take a look at those top 3.
3. Laplace’s Power Rivaled a God, and So Might Rimuru’s
Before he was split into two entities, Laplace was considered the most powerful being in the world. His strength was described as practically mythical, where magic itself stopped making sense. Back then, he took down multiple great heroes alone and was only defeated by being outnumbered.
Laplace’s abilities are better understood if we roll back to what all seven characters till now were capable of. Laplace, technically, is stronger than all of them. Rimuru would still win a fight against him, but this is where he would start having a real problem.
2. Orsted’s Flawless Mastery and Combat Loops Present a Deadly Threat
As the reigning 100th Dragon God, Orsted stands as the undisputed apex combatant of his universe. Though hindered by ancient curses that severely throttle his mana regeneration, his true threat stems from hundreds of loops of complete meta-knowledge. He possesses perfect technical execution of every single combat style, capable of dispelling god-tier magic barehanded with specialized techniques like God Strike.
Against a character like Rimuru, who scales up by absorbing and countering whatever he’s faced with, that kind of built-in counter is genuinely dangerous, since it removes the thing Rimuru relies on most. Orsted lands at number 2 because he’s not winning through traditional means. He doesn’t need to when he can shape the battle himself. Furthermore, no matter how many times he dies, Orsted can go back in time and come back.
1. Hitogami Is on a Level Even Rimuru Can’t Reach
Hitogami isn’t really a fighter at all, and that’s exactly why he is at the top of this ranking. He’s an unknown entity, and he’s the one confirmed to have taken down an actual Dragon God through manipulation, not combat, something nobody else on this list has ever pulled off. Furthermore, it took a single attack, even though he is not a fighter, to end the entire Dragon World.
He is able to see everywhere at once, and even look 100 years into the future with ease. This means that no matter what is thrown at him, he knows 100 years in advance. While Rimuru can still fight here, with his own hack abilities, it’s going to be a hard battle for him.
| RANK | CHARACTER |
| 10 | Kishirika |
| 9 | Randolph Marianne |
| 8 | Gal Farion |
| 7 | Alek |
| 6 | Rudeus Greyrat |
| 5 | Perugius Doldia |
| 4 | Badigadi |
| 3 | Laplace |
| 2 | Orsted |
| 1 | Hitogami |
Which of these characters do you think would be smart enough not to fight Rimuru? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Mushoku Tensei and That Time I Got Reincarnated As a Slime are streaming on Crunchyroll.
